Type 2 Nerve Pain

Are your blood glucose levels under control?
I am no expert, but I think that lower blood glucose is the most effective counter measure.

As a child I watched my grandmother dying from the complications of uncontrolled diabetes, wondered where she was when she was in hospital, and why she didn't seem to have as much leg as other people when she reappeared back in the bed she lived in.
I beg you to consider that you could be killing yourself by not eating properly to control your blood sugars, that you could be bringing on years of pain, distress and incapacity, and to decide that it is not hard at all if it means being able to stand up and walk on your own two feet.
That is all I have to say on the matter - it is down to you to decide.

JayT said:

No. I started out with bgl's in the 400-520 range. Two months ago, with diet, it was in 179-210 avg. Well, I am back in the 300 range. Failing to eat properly again. It's just hard to break old food habits.

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first Welcome here JayT.

you need to get your numbers down to normal that is essential...

if you are on insuline affecting medication you need to know a lot of it to go low carb but my suggestion would be :

you could go nuts for a few days, like only eating nuts nuts are very high fat and hardly contains carbs and only a few proteins... and avocado is also a good food for getting numbers down..
macadamia nuts and brazil nuts are my favorites...
or eat a lot of whipped cream with only a little berries in ..... no sugar of cause
I´ll tag @ daisy so you´ll get the information everyone new in here gets, it is important information and usefull ...

some try the R-Alpha-Lipoic-Acid for neuropathy at least 600mg a day and some say it helps them a bit...but the most important is still to get numbers reallt low

there is not a cure for everything, in some cases it actually is essential that one avoid to get the condition by living according to what prevents getting the disease.. sometimes neuropathy can be ireversible, which means it cant be cured and almost cant be helped... so before it gets too cronical it is crusial to avoid carbs in too high numbers which mean only very few carbs every days.

Jay t as other member said if your blood sugars are running high this is not helping with nerve pain do your best to stick to a healthy diet that's easy for me to say I know but it really will help not just with nerve pain but generally with all diabetes related problems and make sure you test regularly.not sure about a type 2 doctor as I'm type 1 insulin controlled but will see what I can find out I have always gone to see my diabetic specialist at hos usually once a year who deals with type 1 and 2 if you here anything please keep us posted all the best for now.

JayT said:

Does anyone have advice on how to combat nerve pain in my feet? I take a prescribed pill for it but sometimes the pain seems unbearable. It makes me very iratable. What are some of the ways you guys combat diabetic nerve pain? Also, I have been thinking seriously of finding a medical doctor who specializes in type 2 diabetes. Any thoughts on that?

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Just a thought.. do you take any medication that might cause pain as a side effect? I'm not very knowledgeable in such things but have read that some drugs such as statins may cause joint pain.. could this be possible?

Freema said:

first Welcome here JayT.

you need to get your numbers down to normal that is essential...

if you are on insuline affecting medication you need to know a lot of it to go low carb but my suggestion would be :

you could go nuts for a few days, like only eating nuts nuts are very high fat and hardly contains carbs and only a few proteins... and avocado is also a good food for getting numbers down..
macadamia nuts and brazil nuts are my favorites...
or eat a lot of whipped cream with only a little berries in ..... no sugar of cause
I´ll tag @ daisy so you´ll get the information everyone new in here gets, it is important information and usefull ...

some try the R-Alpha-Lipoic-Acid for neuropathy at least 600mg a day and some say it helps them a bit...but the most important is still to get numbers reallt low

there is not a cure for everything, in some cases it actually is essential that one avoid to get the condition by living according to what prevents getting the disease.. sometimes neuropathy can be ireversible, which means it cant be cured and almost cant be helped... so before it gets too cronical it is crusial to avoid carbs in too high numbers which mean only very few carbs every days.

Click to expand...

@daisy1 .... Apologies for the interruption @Freema

@JayT

Hello Jay and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask more questions when you need to and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you'll find well over 147,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.

There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a free 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic.

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. They're all free.

• Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why
• Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.

You need to get your BS down which should help. It's not an easy journey but it's essential for your health to get it under control

Hi @JayT I would say in the UK that most Doctors have a basic knowledge of diabetes, leaving the expertise to Diabetic Nurses. The answers you need are within you. You need to flip the switch in your brain which says I choose to be the best I can. The suggested action to follow, is to embrace a removal of bread, pasta, rice, sweets, cakes, high fructose fruits (berries are fine), sweet drinks and of course sugar.

For me seeing my daughter a little out of focus gave me the added strength to go he'll for leather into trying to fix myself. I really hope resolve from today to get on the road to excellent control of your diabetes - this disease is not merciful if you allow it to take hold.